As I mentioned in my last post, insects have been eating my eggplant. They primarily eat the leaves, but they also like to chew on the fruit and ruined three. These insects have appeared in the past, but not every year. Since I only have two groups of eggplant, I removed the insects by hand rather than using an insecticide. Before I removed them, I took some photos.

After an internet search, I’ve identified them as Colorado potato beetle larvae. Eggplant are in the same family as potatoes, so it’s not surprising that they share pests. North Carolina State University has useful information on eggplant pests and on the Colorado potato beetle. I also found a great photo of a larva on flikr.